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Slovenia, Italy and Poland start Men’s U23 World Championship qualifier in style
- Updated: July 28, 2016
Zagreb, Croatia, July 27, 2016 – On Wednesday Slovenia opened the programme of the European qualification tournament for next year’s FIVB U23 Men’s Volleyball World Championship by cruising to a comprehensive 3-0 victory (25-20, 25-16, 26-24) over Bulgaria. Later in the afternoon Italy also cruised to a 3-0 win in their matchup with Turkey (25-21, 25-17, 26-24); to complete the schedule of the first competition day in Zagreb pre-favourites Poland defeated hosts Croatia 3-0 (25-21, 25-11, 25-20). The eventual winners and runners-up of the single round robin tournament will qualify for next year’s World Championship in Egypt – Russia are already qualified as they top the current FIVB ranking in this age-group.Slovenia v Bulgaria 3-0 (25-20, 25-16, 26-24)Bulgaria and Slovenia opened the tournament in Zagreb and after a close race in the early stages of the opening set, Slovenia edged ahead at the first technical time-out (8-7). After the break, Slovenia scored three points in a row and Bulgaria made a succession of errors resulting in a commanding 16-11 lead for Slovenia. The Bulgarian coach attempted to change the course of the game with substitutions, but Slovenia remained focused through to the end (25-20).Slovenia also set the pace of the game in the second set, leading the way with a massive 9-2. But after Bulgaria coach Miroslav Zhivkov decided to opt for his second setter Konstantin Nechev, things started working a lot better for his team. Bulgaria closed in at 13-16 but after the break for the second technical time-out, Slovenia resumed their forward march resulting in a compelling 25-16 win.Bulgaria rising star and team captain Velizar Chernokozhev suffered an injury in the third set but his team did not stop putting on a fight – the teams played point for point until Slovenia finished it all off at 26-24.Tonček Stern and Jan Kozamernik were the top scorers for Slovenia with 13 and 12 points, respectively, while Chernokozhev paced Bulgaria with nine despite his injury.Bulgaria coach Miroslav Zhivkov said: “My team did not play good in reception, and we also made many unforced errors in attack. We started very nervous; we have to forget this match and re-start from scratch tomorrow.”Slovenia coach Iztok Ksela said: “To tell you the truth we …
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